Pacific Northwest Overview

Too often, too many families in our own backyard lack the basic resources that are essential to give children a strong start in life. Nearly one quarter of children in Washington state are at-risk because of poverty coupled with other risk factors. Nearly half of all shelter residents across Washington state are families with young children and in King County, Washington, a minimum wage worker must work at least 101 hours a week to afford a modest, two-bedroom apartment.

Working with many public and private partners, the foundation's Pacific Northwest program aims to positively impact the lives of families and children in need, by placing a special emphasis on expanding supportive housing options for low-income families, investing in programs designed to help at-risk children and youth, and increasing access to technology for disadvantaged communities. Whenever possible, the foundation provides challenge and matching grants that assist Washington and Oregon nonprofit organizations in strengthening their programs and infrastructure.

The Pacific Northwest program is focused specifically on helping families in the Northwest, primarily those in Washington state. But the foundation's investments in the Pacific Northwest span all four areas of giving. For example, our Education program works with Washington school districts to help raise graduation rates and ensure that every student graduates ready for college, work, and citizenship. Our Global Health and Global Libraries programs also partner with key grantees in the region that are working to develop global health solutions or providing access to information via computers in public libraries. Collectively, the foundation has invested more than $1 billion in the Pacific Northwest.

For the Pacific Northwest program, 2004 was a year marked by significant progress, particularly in the area of expanding resources for our state's homeless families. Seeing the success of the Sound Families Initiative, the state Legislature created the Washington Families Fund, a public-private partnership to fund non-profit organizations providing critical support services. These services include job training, domestic abuse counseling, parenting classes and financial planning, which are all linked to affordable housing. These are all linked to affordable housing. Initial findings from the University of Washington's School of Social Work's evaluation of the Sound Families Initiative show supportive housing plays a significant role in bridging families back to stability. Nearly 90 percent of families go on to permanent housing after leaving Sound Families transitional housing units and parents report seeing improvements in their children's attendance in school and behavior.

Every year, Gates Foundation grantees note similar positive change among the families and children they serve. We are a proud supporter of these organizations diligently working to transform lives from vulnerability to thriving stability.

To learn more about a few of our grantees, click through the milestones at the top of this page. And to see a complete list of all the foundation's grants, go to our Grants Highlights page.